Sick Day
by Craig T. Crocodile
Summary: Fear mysteriously comes down with a stomach bug, and getting upset over it would only make the feeling worse. Joy offers to take care of Fear on his day off by making him tea and reading him a story. (Requested Starnerve OneShot.)


**My first requested OneShot story! This is a Starnerve OneShot requested by** **Jonathan Sharp.**

 **I still have not decided what my next big story is going to be. But until then, I am accepting requests for OneShot fanfics. If you are interested in asking for one, please visit my profile for my rules about requests.**

 **Keep in mind that the idea for this story was not mine. Sharp gave me the idea and I wrote this story from there.**

 **Anyways, enjoy the story! And remember to review so I know why you liked it!**

* * *

Fear didn't know how it happened. He was feeling just fine the other day; now he felt awful, like something inside of him wasn't right.

"Joy…?" he hoarsely called out from his bed.

Joy came into the room as soon as she heard her name. "What is it, Fear?" she asked in a soothing voice.

Fear coughed. "I don't feel so good," he answered.

Joy walked over to him. "What's wrong? You're not sick, are you?"

"I'm afraid I am," Fear responded, coughing again. "I don't know how or why, though."

Joy headed back for the door. "Stay right there, Fear. I'll be right back." Then she exited Fear's room.

Fear lay silently in his bed. He really didn't like this feeling of being sick. It wasn't long before his natural emotion kicked in. His mind began to fill with worrying thoughts. What if he had the flu? What if he was so sick that he might not survive? What if this would be his last day alive?

Unfortunately, the more Fear worried, the worse he felt. Clearly, fretting over his own sickness wasn't going to help. He grabbed his old teddy bear and hugged it tightly.

It wasn't long before Joy came back into Fear's bedroom with Sadness right next to her. Sadness was carrying a first aid kit and wearing a stethoscope around her neck. Joy had already told her about Fear's apparent illness, and she decided to give him a check up.

Sadness walked up next to Fear. She put on the stethoscope and placed the other end against Fear's chest. As far as Sadness could tell, his heartbeat was just fine; it was beating at a rapid pace, which was perfectly normal for Fear. She then pulled out a thermometer from her bag. She asked Fear to open his mouth. Fear did so reluctantly, and Sadness stuck the thermometer into it. Fear's temperature was okay; a tad higher than normal, but otherwise it was okay.

"He seems fine physically," Sadness told Joy. "He probably has a 24-hour stomach bug. It'll probably be gone tomorrow."

"What should we do?" Joy asked.

"He'll have to stay in bed today," Sadness answered. "I'll keep an eye on him today."

"Wait!" Joy said suddenly. "Let me take care of him!"

Fear and Sadness stood silently. "But Joy!" Fear exclaimed. "What about Riley? She needs you!"

"She needs you, too, Fear," Joy pointed out. "Don't worry; I'll come in every so often to check in on you! How does that sound?"

Fear sighed. He didn't feel like arguing at the moment. He nodded.

"I think it's about time for Riley to wake up now," Sadness stated. "Let's head downstairs now."

"Just stay in bed now, Fear," Joy said to him as she and Sadness left his room. "I'll come back later!"

* * *

As Fear lay in bed, a wave of guilt hit him. He was concerned not only for his own well-being, but for his host Riley's as well. Since he was sick in bed, he couldn't do his job of keeping Riley safe from harm. He only hoped that the others were handling things okay during his absence.

Joy walked into Fear's bedroom, interrupting his nagging thoughts. She was carrying a warm cup of tea in her hands. She carefully walked over to Fear's bed and placed the cup down on his nightstand.

"How are you feeling?" she asked in a calm, cheery voice.

"Still a little sick," Fear weakly answered. "And guilty. I hope Riley isn't getting into any trouble that she needs me for."

"Don't worry about it," Joy reassured. "It's a Saturday today. Riley's doing her homework right now, so I doubt either one of us is needed currently. That gives me time to take care of you."

Fear sighed. "Good to know things are still under control."

Joy picked up the cup of tea and handed it to Fear. "Here," she said. "Drink some of this. It's nice and warm."

Fear reached out for the teacup in Joy's hands and grabbed hold of it. He then moved the cup to his lips and slowly drank its contents. He then handed the cup back to Joy.

Joy set the cup aside on the nightstand. "Would you like to have me read you a story?" she asked sweetly.

Fear nodded. "I would definitely like that," he said.

Joy went over to the bookshelf and examined every book available. Whenever Riley read a new book or story, it would form a book for the emotions to read in their own time. There were so many stories to choose from that Joy had a hard time deciding which one to read to Fear. Eventually she found one that she thought both she and Fear would enjoy. The cover had a picture of a sleeping princess with blonde hair on it.

Joy read the story to Fear out loud. It was a story about a beautiful princess who was placed under a spell, putting her in an eternal sleep; she could only be awoken by her true love's first kiss. The prince who had known the princess went out to wake her, but was opposed by the evil witch who cast the spell on the princess. The witch transformed herself into a dragon and battled the prince. In the end, the prince was victorious, and awoke the princess from her sleep with a kiss.

Fear enjoyed having Joy read this story to him. He always liked the happy ending.

"Joy!" came the voice of Disgust. "We're done with homework! We'll need you out here now!"

"Alright!" Joy answered back. "I'll be there in just a second!" She placed the book down. "Sorry I can't stay here longer, Fear. I may come back later tonight."

"It's okay," Fear said. "Thanks for the story."

Joy gave him a 'thumbs up' as she left the room.

Fear gripped his teddy bear and slowly drifted off.

* * *

That night, after Riley had gone to sleep, Joy came back into Fear's room.

"How are you feeling now?" she asked again.

"Still sick," Fear answered. "I took a nap after you left. Being sick really blows."

"I know," Joy said. "But Sadness said that the bug will be gone tomorrow. You should get some more rest."

"I'll have trouble falling asleep," Fear said. "This sickness is leaving me worried and restless."

Then, Joy had an idea that would help Fear get to sleep. She remembered how Riley's mother used to sing lullabies to her. She decided to try it for herself.

She sat herself next to Fear's bed and began to sing softly.

 _"When you wish upon a star,  
_ _Makes no difference who you are,  
_ _Anything your heart desires  
_ _Will come to you._

 _If your heart is in your dream,  
_ _No request is too extreme.  
_ _When you wish upon a star  
_ _As dreamers do_

 _Fate is kind,  
_ _She brings to those who love  
_ _The sweet fulfillment of  
_ _Their secret longing._

 _Like a bolt out of the blue,  
_ _Fate steps in and sees you through.  
_ _When you wish upon a star,  
_ _Your dreams come true."_

As Joy sang, Fear began to close his eyes. He fell soundly asleep.

Joy smiled. She pulled the covers over Fear's body. "Goodnight, Fear," she whispered. "Sleep well."

She quietly left the room, slowly closing the door behind her.

* * *

The next day, Fear woke up feeling much better. The sensation of a weak stomach was gone from his body. Instead, he felt… hungry. He had forgotten that during his sickness he barely ate anything.

Joy opened the door. "Good morning, Fear!" she chirped. "How are you feeling today?"

"Much better than yesterday," Fear said with a smile. "But boy, am I hungry!"

"Good to see you back in good condition!" Joy smiled. She went up to Fear and hugged him.

Fear couldn't help but blush. "You helped me get through it, Joy," he said.

Joy let out a bubbly giggle. "C'mon, Fear!" she said excitedly. "It's time to greet the new day!"

Fear smiled. He felt very lucky to have someone like Joy. To him, she was his lucky star.


End file.
